NOSTALGIA: Before and After. A Collection of Unique Polaroids by Andrey Tarkovsky

http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/23936/

The definitive collection of Polaroids taken by the legendary filmmaker Andrey Tarkovsky (1932-1986) will come to auction for the first time in a stand-alone sale, Nostalgia: Before and After – Important Polaroids by Andrey Tarkovsky, at Bonhams London on 6 October 2016. The photographs – 257 Polaroids in total, are divided into 29 lots containing nine or ten pictures each, with estimates ranging from £20,000-37,000 per lot. They date from Tarkovsky’s time in Italy and Russia and come directly from his family.

Many of the photographs were taken while Tarkovsky was making Nostalgia, and the photos feature the familiar atmospheric landscapes and settings of that legendary 1983 film. From intimate snapshots of Tarkovsky’s circle of friends and dog, to evocative pictures of the Russian and Italian countryside, the works give a glimpse of late 70s and early 80s life, frozen in time. Tarkovsky started experimenting with the Polaroid camera in the late seventies, and was delighted with the results, although he immediately burned the Polaroids he was not happy with.